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In his dramatic appearance before former colleagues, Sessions contradicted former FBI Director James Comey's testimony from last week. The Attorney-General accused James Comey and others of innuendo to damage his reputation. Attorney General Jeff Sessions says he recused himself from the investigation into Trump campaign ties to Russian Federation because he was involved in the campaign.

Sessions continued to argue on Tuesday that his recusal was due to his "principal adviser" role in Trump's campaign and not his contact with Russian officials. The former Federal Bureau of Investigation director also testified that he and the agency had believed Sessions was "inevitably going to recuse" for reasons he said he could not elaborate on.

Two prison guards were shot and killed on Tuesday before two inmates escaped from a Georgia work detail trip, the Putnam County Sheriff said. Also on Monday, a decorated, 15-year veteran Arkansas police officer was shot during a traffic stop in a town about 90 miles (140 km) northeast of Little Rock.

U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis told lawmakers Tuesday that the United States is not gaining in the fight to stabilize Afghanistan and vowed to present a strategy to Congress "by mid-July". He put most of the blame on Congress for its inability to approve budgets on time or repeal a law that strictly limits defense spending. Qatar is a "very complex situation", Mattis said , as he stressed the need to find "common ground".

District of Columbia Attorney General Karl Racine , right, accompanied by Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh , speaks during a news conference in Washington , Monday, June 12, 2017 , to discuss the lawsuit they filed against President Donald Trump .

Pyongyang has ordered three ballistic missile launches, a surface-to-air missile, and Thursday's cruise missile tests since the South's President Moon Jae-in took power in early May. This put China in line with new United Nations sanctions on Pyongyang after its nuclear test and rocket launch past year. Undated released by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on December 11, 2016.